


For He So Loved The World (the O, Thy Father Remix)

by wyvern



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Extortion, Fist Fights, Guilt, Homophobic Language, Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, M/M, Past Rape/Non-con, Rape/Non-con Elements, Religion, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Sexual Abuse, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-09 10:58:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14714757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyvern/pseuds/wyvern
Summary: Arthur's best friend, flatmate, and secret crush is Merlin, a gay, open-minded priest with a deeply-hidden secret of his own.





	For He So Loved The World (the O, Thy Father Remix)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Amphigoury](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amphigoury/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Father, Into Your Hands (I Commit My Spirit)](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/382524) by Amphigoury. 



> **PLEASE READ ALL THE WARNINGS!** If you believe any of the warnings might trigger you in any way, I urge you not to read this fic. Please stay safe.
> 
>  **Additional warnings:** Mentions of threats of sexual assault towards children, mentions of a past sexual assault of a child, abuse within a religious setting. An explanation for the violence tag is available in the End Notes.
> 
> Dear Amphigoury, every single one of your artwork is fantastic and I was thrilled to get the opportunity to remix one of them! This one in particular stuck with me, but instead of going in the same direction as the art, I kind of went the opposite way - the art is smokin' hot, but this isn't a sexy story in the slightest. Still, I hope you will enjoy it, even if it's only in a small way (but please don't feel you _have_ to read it if there are tags you don't like). It's meant to take place on both sides of the moment you captured in the art, anyway.
> 
> The title is an incorrect version of a Bible quote.
> 
>  _Merlin_ and all the characters from the TV series belong to the show's creators. Thank you to the wonderful Jess for the beta.

 

~~***~~

“What about that guy?” Merlin says and nods towards a man who’s leaning on the bar.

Arthur glances at him and scoffs.

“He’s got a saggy butt, my friend. No one wants a saggy butt.”

“Saggy is a bit harsh…” Merlin rolls his eyes, but can’t help shooting Arthur a smile that makes his insides go all wobbly.

“Mm, or not,” Arthur says quietly and takes a sip of his beer.

Laughing, Merlin leans over and bumps Arthur’s shoulder with his own, but he doesn’t say anything more about it.

“Do you want that guy?”

It’s not an innocent question even if he wants it to be. His insides go heavy as he waits for Merlin’s answer.

“The vow of celibacy, Arthur,” Merlin says in his most serious voice, but Arthur can see the corner of his eyes crinkling. “I’ve taken it, remember?”

“Yeah, you did once when we were 15 and drunk off our heads and had just been turned down by the same girl, but I don’t think that was actually valid.”

Merlin barks out a small laugh and quickly pats Arthur’s arm. His hand is warm and the touch makes Arthur shiver. He wants to put his own hand on top of Merlin’s and keep it there, but he doesn’t.

“But I am still a priest,” Merlin continues. “I should concentrate on helping the people in my congregation instead of helping myself to someone’s arse.”

He’s only joking about that last bit and Arthur knows it, but the smile on Merlin’s face suddenly becomes sad anyway.

Arthur swallows hard. “How is work? Is Dad a difficult boss?”

The lingering smile on Merlin’s lips disappears, and he looks into his glass as he swivels the small bit of Sprite still remaining there.

“It’s fine.”

“Only fine?”

“No, it’s…” Merlin watches Arthur thoughtfully for a second before looking away again. “Archdeacon Pendragon wants me to be responsible for the Summer Concert, but I don’t know if I’d be the best person for the job.”

Arthur frowns. “Why not? It’s just the boys’ choir, isn’t it? The community loves the boys’ choir. Shouldn’t be difficult to get people to attend. It’s a charity event after all.”

They sit quietly for a while before Merlin answers.

“But they’d need to spend more time in church. Much more than normal. More evenings.”

“And?”

Merlin sighs and rubs his fingers against his temples, like someone with a budding headache.

“Maybe it won’t be as difficult as I imagine. Maybe it’ll be easier this time.”

 

~~***~~

When they get home, Arthur hops in the shower. The warm water running over his body is so nice and in his tipsy mind, he imagines he’s not alone. Merlin’s there too, glorious in his nakedness, but still as awkward as always — it wouldn’t be Merlin otherwise — and Arthur’s finally allowed to touch him freely, run his hands over his body, caress his back. He imagines Merlin’s hand on his cock, soft but with exactly the right pressure, working him closer and closer to...

There’s a sudden knock on the bathroom door.

“Planning on using all the hot water, or…?”

Arthur swears quietly to himself.

“No, sorry! I’ll come… I’ll come out in a second.”

He quickly tugs himself off, slightly ashamed of himself, and gets out of the shower.

When he walks back into his bedroom there’s a glass of water and a pack of ibuprofen on the bedside table. Merlin always looks after him after a night out. He sits down on the bed and sighs.

“Thanks, Mum!” he shouts.

“Welcome! I’ll hop into the shower now, yeah?” Merlin replies.

“Yeah,” Arthur says, mostly to himself. “Yeah, of course.”

He waits until he can hear Merlin turning on the shower to take his pillow, press it against his face and scream into it with frustration.

Why can’t he be brave enough to just tell him?

 

~~***~~

A few days later, Arthur sees Merlin exit Uther’s office from across the yard. He walks fast with his head bent down, his robes moving dramatically with every step. It looks almost as if he’s been chastised by the archdeacon. Arthur doesn’t think it likely though, since Merlin never does anything his conscience won’t allow, meaning he really shouldn’t have anything to be chastised for — ever! He’s got a wicked sense of humour, yes, but he would never harm a fly.

“Merlin!” he shouts, but Merlin doesn’t seem to hear.

Arthur frowns slightly and hurries to catch up.

He slings his arm around Merlin’s head and tugs him close in a reckless way, which isn’t really that odd because he’s done it a thousand times before. What is odd, though, is that Merlin recoils so much that Arthur automatically lets go and stops dead.

Merlin stops too. He’s clearly upset about something, but Arthur doesn’t have time to ask before he says, “Sorry, Arthur. Sorry, I was so deep in my own thoughts that I didn’t hear you coming.”

“You okay?” Arthur asks, and Merlin nods even before he’s finished the question but he doesn’t meet Arthur’s eyes.

“Yeah, yeah,” he says.

Merlin’s face is blotchy and when he realises Arthur’s watching him closely, he blushes a deep red, runs his hands over his clothes, turns back and starts walking again. “I’m fine.”

But he slows down enough to let Arthur catch up, and they walk in silence until they’ve reached the old wooden door leading to the part of the building where Merlin’s office is.

“Sorry, Arthur,” Merlin says, “I need… I need some time alone, I need to prepare tomorrow’s sermon and go through some paperwork. I’ll see you tonight, yeah?”

Arthur nods slowly. “Okay, but…”

He doesn’t get to finish the sentence, because Merlin just nods quickly as a reply, puts his warm hand on top of Arthur’s and squeezes it. “Thanks,” he says and is gone.

 

~~***~~

Arthur’s already in bed when he hears Merlin come home late that night. Whatever Merlin was doing at his office, it must’ve taken longer than he’d expected. The shower is turned on and Arthur lies quiet in his bed, just listening to the water running.

It stays on for a very long time - it must surely have gone ice cold by now - and Arthur is almost on his way up to check Merlin hasn’t forgotten about it when it’s finally turned off. A few minutes later, he can hear the door to Merlin’s bedroom click shut, and Arthur finally allows himself to drift off to sleep.

 

~~***~~

The following weeks are strange. When Arthur comes down into the kitchen in the mornings, Merlin has already had his breakfast and rushes off into the bathroom to get ready for work. Normally they have breakfast together, but Arthur thinks not too much of it. He chalks it up to stress caused by preparations for the upcoming Summer Concert, and leaves it be.

However, one evening, Arthur gets home to catch the end of a phone conversation. Merlin’s standing in the kitchen with his back to the door and doesn’t seem to have heard Arthur come home. His shoulders are tense and he’s giving himself a kind of one-armed hug.

“No, you need to promise to leave them...”

Merlin’s interrupted by the other person on the phone. He runs his hand through his short, black hair, making it stand on end. Suddenly, his shoulders slump and he hangs his head, like he’s been defeated in an argument.

“I...” he says into the phone, “I can come by for a few minutes tomorrow between the boys’ choir practice and the admin meeting, but not for long. Just don’t...”

He listens to the other person’s reply, and then hangs up without saying anything else. Sighing, he puts down the phone on the table and runs both his hands through his hair this time, making it even more unkempt. It’s an attractive look on him, but Arthur tries not to dwell on it. He clears his throat, not wanting to startle him but failing miserably as Merlin jumps at the sound.

“Sorry,” Arthur says. “I tried not to…”

Merlin immediately snaps the phone up from the table and holding it against his chest like he’s protecting a small child from harm.

“How much did you hear?” he says, voice tight.

“Nothing, really. Just the very last bit.”

He’s surprised by the animosity in Merlin’s voice when he replies.

“Don’t _ever_ listen to my conversations again. It’s private.”

Arthur holds his hands up in a innocent gesture and smiles to show he didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but Merlin just rushes past him and disappears up the stairs. The door to his room closes with a bit more force than necessary, and Arthur is left bewildered in the kitchen.

 

~~***~~

It continues like that for two whole months. That the Summer Concert is performed perfectly doesn’t change Merlin’s behaviour at all, and when Arthur tries to ask him about it, he either snaps at him or walks away with only a short excuse. They barely see each other at home and when Arthur tries to get Merlin to go to lunch during the work day, he either gets a short message saying Merlin’s busy and doesn’t have the time, or no response at all.

It’s worrying, and Arthur doesn’t know what to do.

 

~~***~~

Arthur meets up with Uther for lunch regularly, about once a month or so. His dad moved  
here six months ago, but he’s almost always busy with church business, or travelling to conduct church business, or… Well. You could say the church became Uther’s life when Arthur was born and his beloved wife died giving birth to him.

When they sit down to eat, Arthur wonders if he’s really about to do the right thing — it really feels like ratting out your best friend to his boss — but his feelings for Merlin take over.

“I’m worried about Merlin, Dad,” he says as he watches Uther spear an asparagus on his fork and pop it in his mouth.

Uther slowly looks up at him while he chews his food. His eyes are piercing, and Arthur’s always found it quite difficult to hold his gaze, but he’s trying now. For Merlin’s sake.

“He’s been avoiding me for no good reason,” he says. “I’ve tried asking what it’s about but he won’t tell, and now he’s avoiding me all the time. We’ve barely spoken at all this week.”

Uther puts his knife and fork down. He puts his hands together in a thoughtful gesture and nods slowly. “Maybe he feels he needs to focus on God?”

“But…” Arthur frowns. “Okay, maybe, but I’m his friend. I won’t keep him from…”

“Maybe he finds _temptation_ around him and needs to focus on God,” says Uther and lifts an eyebrow meaningfully.

“Temptation?”

Suddenly realising what his dad is referring to, Arthur can’t get his thoughts back in order.

“Think about it, Arthur. You’re always around him, both at work and and home, and although the Church doesn’t approve of certain… behaviours, they do exist. I’ve always tried to be an open-minded archdeacon and won’t sack him for it myself, but maybe he fears his perverted longings are distracting him from his true calling?”

Arthur startles at the ‘perverted’ bit. His relationship with his father has come a long way since he came out, but it’s still not perfect.

“Or maybe he’s afraid of what the people in the congregation would say if they found out?”

And with that, Uther tucks back into his chicken. Arthur, on the other hand, has lost his appetite.

 

~~***~~

When Arthur gets back to the house, Merlin’s in the shower. Unthinking, Arthur plops down on the carpet in the corridor outside the bathroom and waits.

Twenty minutes later, the door is unlocked and Merlin steps out. His legs are still wet where they’re sticking out under the large bath towel he’s wrapped himself up in. Jumping at the sight of Arthur, Merlin quickly tries to squeeze past, but Arthur puts a leg up to stop him. They both tensely wait for the other to start talking.

A drop of water is running from Merlin’s hair down along his neck, and Arthur knows he shouldn’t stare but he can’t help it. Merlin’s very pale and he seems thinner now than ever before. Arthur can see his collarbones clearly under his skin. In his priest robes it’s difficult to tell, but it’s obvious that he’s lost quite a lot of weight lately. The realisation makes Arthur’s stomach churn with worry.

“You’ve been avoiding me. Why?”

The accusation isn’t the way Arthur had planned to start, but now it’s out there. He holds his breath as he waits for an answer.

“I’m not…”

Arthur scoffs.

“You are. Don’t lie, Merlin. Remember, God is watching.”

Arthur intended it to come out as a joke, but fails miserably on the delivery.

At that, Merlin laughs humourlessly. “Yeah, He’s always watching over us, isn’t He?”

“So why are you avoiding me, Merlin? Have I done something?”

Merlin leans against the wall and sighs. He closes his eyes before answering. “I’m just…”

“What?”

“The boys’ choir…”

“It’s fine, though, isn’t it? The Summer Concert was fantastic and raised a lot of money for the charities. You did a great job with it, everybody says so.”

“I’m… I’m just under a lot of pressure, Arthur.”

That’s a lie and Arthur knows it.

“I talked to Dad,” he admits.

Merlin immediately goes tense and his eyes fix on Arthur’s face. “Did you, now?”

“Yeah. I’m worried about you. You’ve...”

“It’s none of your business, Arthur.”

He pushes on Arthur’s leg so forcefully that he manages to get past.

“Merlin…” Arthur says and reaches out for him.

“No, Arthur.” Merlin’s voice is shaking as he pauses. “No, you stay out of it.”

Then he disappears into his room and locks the door behind him. Closing his eyes, Arthur hits his head softly against the wall behind him a few times. Then he sighs and opens his eyes again, staring at the wall opposite.

“So... that went well.”

 

~~***~~

The following Wednesday, Arthur gets a text message from his dad, asking him to meet at his office after lunch. When Arthur knocks on the door and is granted entrance, he immediately notices Merlin standing in front of Uther’s big oak desk. He looks pale and very unhappy, and compulsively runs his hands over his robes to try and smooth them out, though they look fine to Arthur. He wants to reach out and calm him down, but he doesn’t.

Uther, on the other hand, seems very comfortable as he smiles at Arthur and gestures for the both of them to sit down in the plump chairs in front of the desk. They do, Merlin rather stiffly.

“I thought we’d have a little chat, just the three of us,” Uther says.

Merlin looks neither at him nor Arthur.

“Merlin?” Arthur says with a glance at him. Then he turns to his dad. “I’m sorry, why…?”

“Well, as you might remember, Arthur, you told me you were worried about Merlin, and I’ve had several talks with him since then about that very issue. Merlin?”

Arthur blushes. Never intending to put Merlin in this position, he glances over at him but Merlin keeps his gaze firmly on the floor in front of him. There’s a small blush on his neck, betraying how uncomfortable he feels.

It takes a few moments before Merlin responds to Uther’s request.

“I’ve been…” His voice breaks and he glances up at Uther, who gives him a short nod as encouragement. “I’ve… I’ve lost focus on what I’m supposed to do in life.”

He stops there and seems unable to continue. Several times, he swallows hard and opens his mouth, but nothing more comes out. Arthur watches him carefully for any sign of the old Merlin, but it’s like he’s watching a carefully guarded version of the friend he used to know, a frailer copy that might disintegrate and disappear at any moment.

Uther sighs. “I’ve suggested maybe he needs to move into his own accommodation to get over the distraction, and Merlin’s agreed. Haven’t you, Merlin?”

Merlin nods, his lips pressed tightly together.

It’s not what Arthur expected, and it feels like a gut punch. “But…” he starts. “But I…”

Finally, Merlin glances at Arthur, but immediately turns away when Uther speaks again.

“It’s for the best, Arthur. You wouldn’t want to cause your friend harm, would you?”

“No… But Merlin, I…”

Uther shakes his head and rises from his chair. “That’s enough. It’s probably best if you try to avoid each other as much as possible until we can arrange the move. Isn’t that so, Merlin?”

Arthur’s stomach sinks as he watches Merlin nod. When Merlin rises, he rises slowly from his own chair since that seems to be the right thing to do.

“Okay,” he says quietly. “Okay.”

Uther beams at them both. “Great! Then that’s decided. You can go.”

Feeling more like a robot than a human, Arthur turns to go as Merlin does the same. Their hands fleetingly brush together, but Arthur mind still feels so numb that it barely registers in his brain.

Uther clears his throat. “Actually, Merlin… Would you mind staying for a few more minutes? We’ve got business to discuss.”

Both Merlin and Arthur stop at the door.

“I…” Merlin’s hand again brushes against Arthur’s as he turns, more purposefully this time. “I was going to…”

“It’s important.” Uther’s voice tells them it’s not a request.

Merlin’s silence is heavy as he turns back and opens the door for Arthur. “We’ll talk later,” he whispers as Arthur passes him on the way out.

And then Arthur is standing outside the closed oak doors of the archdeacon’s office, feeling empty and numb.

The walk down the stairs takes forever and Arthur’s brain feels foggy and slow. When he reaches the yard, he stops and watches people go about their day. It all feels odd. He wants to talk to Merlin. He needs to talk to Merlin, so he stands outside, anxiously waiting, for several long, painful minutes before deciding to go back in to get him. Whatever Dad has to talk to him about, it can surely wait, he thinks, and takes the stairs two at a time.

The corridor outside the office is still empty and without another thought, Arthur turns the handle on the door and opens it.

Facing the door and leaning forward over the desk is Merlin, his priest robes hiked up over his hips, exposing a pale, naked bottom. His face is wet with tears, but his eyes are tightly shut. He has a grimace on his face telling Arthur he’s not enjoying it. Uther has an expression of grim determination on his face as he leans forward and thrusts his fat cock into Merlin’s arse. With a firm grip on Merlin’s hair, he pulls his head back with every thrust, causing Merlin to let out small, desperate sobs.

Arthur stops dead in the doorway and then everything happens at once.

Merlin opens his eyes and sees Arthur. He immediately tries to get up from the desk and away from Uther. The movement causes Uther to slip out of him and lose the grip on his hair. With a fierce, animal-like need to protect that he’s never experienced before, Arthur quickly closes the gap between him and his father and lands a hard fist on his chin with an accuracy neither he nor Uther ever expected. There’s a chaotic scuffle where Arthur gets a couple of good hits in, and Uther desperately tries to escape his son’s anger.

It all ends when Arthur, in the corner of his eye, sees Merlin flee the room. After stumbling a few times, he gets up to follow. The most important thing is to find Merlin and check if he’s okay.

“Arthur.”

By the door, he’s stopped by Uther’s voice. Still furious, Arthur turns toward his father who is lying on the floor.

“You’re going to jail,” Arthur grinds out through clenched teeth, never having hated his dad more.

“He asked for it, Arthur. He offered himself to me. And it was always God’s will for him to come back to me.”

“Come back?”

Arthur stares unbelievingly at him. Uther’s chin has started to bruise from the hit Arthur landed on it, and there are a few more bleeding scratches on this face, but Arthur can’t find it in himself to care at all.

“You’re going to jail, dad,” he says, “I’ll make sure of it.”

Then he turns around and runs out the door. He needs to find Merlin.

 

~~***~~

It turns out Merlin is great at hiding. After searching for hours, Arthur gets a text message: I’m at the bridge.

It takes ten anxious minutes for him to get to the old stone bridge. It’s part of one of the least popular nature trails in town, just half a mile from where they live, but Arthur knows Merlin loves it. He’s always been ridiculously fond of old stone buildings and bridges.

When Arthur finally reaches it, he sees Merlin sitting on the wide bridge railing, his legs dangling above the slowly moving water in the natural ravine a few yards below. He’s still dressed in his priest robes and his hair is still messy from Uther’s touch. Arthur wants to run his own hands through it to remove every trace of what has happened, to cleanse Merlin of every wrongful action against him.

“Hello,” Merlin says without looking at him. Instead, he keeps looking out over the water.

Arthur is walking slowly closer, not sure what Merlin plans to do. “Hello,” he says.

A sad smile ghosts across Merlin’s face, but he doesn’t say anything more. Arthur doesn’t either, at first. He keeps walking closer, thinking he needs to be close enough to grab Merlin in case he does something stupid.

Of course, Merlin doesn’t allow it.

“You can stop there,” he says when Arthur’s three yards away. “That’s close enough for now.”

Arthur puts his hands up. “Okay,” he says although his entire being wants nothing more than to wrap his arms around Merlin and protect him from everything.

“It’s pretty here,” Merlin says.

His body appears relaxed, but his hands betray him. His fingers pick first at the seam of his robes, then at the small pieces of moss growing on the stone next to where he’s sitting, and then absentmindedly at the dark, short hairs on his arms. Arthur’s chest is aching for him, but he doesn’t know what to say.

“Would you please come down?” he tries at last. “We’ll go home and have a cuppa. Get you warm.”

Call the police. But he doesn’t say it out loud.

Merlin just shakes his head, his hands now wringing a piece of his robes so harshly Arthur is afraid it’ll tear.

“I need you to do something for me, Arthur,” he says, voice still calm.

Arthur shivers, afraid of how this’ll end. “What?”

“You need to make sure Uther will never be alone with the boys again.”

He takes a deep breath before continuing.

“The boys in the choir. He wants them.”

“Wants them?”

“Yes.”

It’s clear from his voice that what Arthur fears is what Merlin means. Arthur feels like every single breath has been forced out of his body, all at once. His dad can’t have… He’s far from perfect, but he’s not that much of a monster, is he?

Swallowing hard, he says, “What exactly do you mean, Merlin?”

“He’s been doing it for a long time. Since we met at Sunday school, Arthur.” He finally turns to look at Arthur. “Since just after you and I met at Sunday school.”

Arthur suddenly can’t breathe at all, can’t think. Has Uther...? Leaning forward, he takes support against the railing and closes his eyes.

A few moments later, there’s a warm hand on Arthur’s shoulder.

“Breathe.”

The warmth of Merlin’s hand becomes an anchor as Arthur tries to pull himself back through the darkness fighting to overwhelm him. Merlin helps him down on the ground so he’s sitting with his back to the railing. For a moment he’s scared Merlin’s going to leave him there, but there’s only a moment before he can feel him plopping down beside him. It takes a few more minutes until he can breathe properly again, but this is important.

“We need to call the police,” he says weakly.

Merlin just shakes his head. “I can’t, I… Would they believe me against the archdeacon, Arthur? I’m a gay priest who came to him. He’s told me several times that people are drawn to power, that’s it’s a powerful aphrodisiac, and that if I ever claimed anything different, I’ll never be believed.”

“You came to him?”

Merlin frowns slightly and looks down onto his robes again. There’s a small blush creeping up his neck and his fingers are back to picking the hem of his robes.

“Please,” Arthur says, not knowing what he’s asking, exactly.

Merlin looks up at him before quickly looking away again.

“I…”

Without thinking, Arthur puts his hand on top of Merlin’s hands to stop them fidgeting.

“It’s okay,” he says, “Not your fault.”

There’s a small beetle crawling on Merlin’s robes, and Arthur gently brushes it off.

“He would’ve gone after them if I hadn’t accepted it.”

The words come out rushed, like they’re being pushed out of him against his will. Maybe they are, Arthur thinks.

“The choir boys?”

Merlin looks at him like he’s trying to will him to understand without him having to say it, but Arthur needs to hear it.

“Are they in danger, Merlin?”

“Yes.”

“But… has he threatened them?”

“He didn’t have to.”

Arthur watches Merlin closely, but he doesn’t volunteer any more information.

“What do you mean?”

Merlin just shakes his head.

“I can’t.”

“Merlin.”

They sit quietly for a long time, Arthur doesn’t know how long. He wants to do something and is frustrated by the inactivity, but realises acting might not be the right thing to do right this moment. Instead, he tries to instill all his love into Merlin by slowly rubbing the inside of his wrist with his thumb. It’s getting colder as the sun moves across the sky, eventually leaving them sitting in the shadows.

“Should we go home, maybe?” Arthur suggests after several more minutes of silence.

There’s not much else to do, and Merlin nods as he slowly gets up and starts to walk. He limps slightly. Arthur hesitates.

“Or to the hospital?”

Turning back towards him, Merlin shakes his head. “Tomorrow,” he says.

Arthur watches him, worried. “I really think…”

“No, Arthur.” Merlin looks very small and more tired than Arthur’s ever seen him before, but his voice is clear. “No. We’ll do everything tomorrow.”

When Arthur catches up, Merlin takes his hand and doesn’t let go.

 

~~***~~  
THE END  
~~***~~

**Author's Note:**

> The violence I'm warning for is Arthur hitting Uther in the face, and the resulting scuffle between them. It's nothing major - nor particularly graphic.


End file.
